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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29591370">Merrily Whirl the Dizzying Dances</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Allekha/pseuds/Allekha'>Allekha</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Dancing, First Kiss, Hand Kink, Heartbeats, M/M, Making Out, Pre-Timeskip | Academy Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), White Heron Cup (Fire Emblem)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 01:09:25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,891</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29591370</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Allekha/pseuds/Allekha</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Yuri doesn't <em>want</em> to be in the White Heron Cup, but he'll do it for Byleth. At least the private dance practice is enjoyable - as is Byleth's reaction when he sees exactly what Yuri's won.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc/My Unit | Byleth</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>81</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Chocolate Box - Round 6</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Merrily Whirl the Dizzying Dances</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/KelpieChaos/gifts">KelpieChaos</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Happy late Chocobox :)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>An afternoon like this was perfect as could be: a plate of sweet snacks on which Yuri could gorge himself, a hot cup of tea that smelled like fruit and honey, and across the small table from him, the complete attention of Byleth. There were still lines of exhaustion from the previous moon on Byleth's face, but he seemed more and more relaxed as this one went on; all the planning for the ball appeared to be making for a good distraction after all.</p><p>Yuri would have preferred more cloud cover to block the irritating glare of the sun, but he could hardly complain about the warmth it brought to the crisp air as they chatted. Byleth asked him how the newly re-arranged patrols for Abyss were working out and listened quietly, head tilted to the side and eyes fixed on him.</p><p>The long stares with nothing behind them had made Yuri uneasy at first – he hadn't made his way up in the world by being poor at reading people, and Byleth had given him little to work with – but they weren't quite as unnerving after all these months of working with him. Especially not now that Byleth's stiff façade had started to soften into tiny expressions, like the curious one he wore at the moment.</p><p>"That reminds me." Byleth bent down to retrieve something by his feet, a covered basket, which he passed to Yuri. It smelled like sugar, and tipping the cover up revealed it was full of pinwheel-shaped pastries, all of them dotted with jam. "Annette and Mercedes made too many to eat. I thought the kids would like them."</p><p>Like them? They were going to be delighted to have homemade pastries handed to them. "You decided that endlessly spoiling all of us wasn't enough? They'll love this. Thanks." Yuri had spent ages trying to figure out what Byleth wanted from him and everyone, but as far as he could tell, the answer really did seem to be their happiness and success. He even came underground in his free time to feed the strays and help recycle the scrap that washed up.</p><p>Yuri closed the basket before he was tempted to start going after the sweets himself and grabbed another of the tiny cakes Byleth had brought for him instead. Sugary things weren't the easiest to come by in Abyss, but there was always an infinite supply of them for Byleth's tea parties.</p><p>"You should come down and give them out with me. One of the kids insisted to me yesterday that the kitties miss you," said Yuri.</p><p>He bit into the cake, relishing the soft texture and the bits of peaches in it and the satisfying sweetness, and when he glanced up, Byleth was making one of his smiles. Any time he smiled in class, it captivated the room, Yuri included. Seeing Byleth direct one at him now felt like an accomplishment. Yuri smiled back at him, and Byleth's eyes softened further.</p><p>"Maybe," he said. "I did catch plenty of fish to share earlier... but first, Rhea asked me to do something."</p><p>"Mm?"</p><p>Byleth stared at him. It prickled at Yuri's skin when it went on for long enough to finish his cake, and he covered his discomfort by grabbing his tea cup and raising an eyebrow over the rim. Byleth still waited until he'd gulped some and put it down.</p><p>"I'd like you to represent our house at the Cup."</p><p>The pleasant sweetness on his tongue and the warmth of the tea both dropped away. "No."</p><p>Byleth tilted his head. "No?"</p><p>"Having the entire monastery watching me prance around on a stage? Pass. I don't enjoy being the center of everyone's attention." Sure, he'd be the natural favorite to win, but the image of a sea of eyes fixed on him made his stomach flip.</p><p>Byleth's eyes drifted past him, and after a moment, he nodded to himself. "Lorenz it is."</p><p>"Wait, <em>Lorenz</em>? Are you serious? That's who you're considering? Is there literally <em>nobody</em> else you could ask?" Yuri had enough of him sitting on the other side of the classroom and avoid him as much as possible. Nobles were always full of themselves, but he'd never heard one who earnestly bought into their bullshit as much as Lorenz did.</p><p>"You seemed like the best fit.... Annette asked to," said Byleth, raising one finger, "but I was afraid she'd fall off the stage." He raised another. "I've seen Flayn's dancing by herself, and it's... like her battle cries." In other words: adorable, tiny, and strange. "Dimitri's convinced he'd fail the whole house if I chose him." Another finger: "Sylvain doesn't know how to dance." Byleth frowned at his hand. "And you're attractive and I thought you'd be good at it, but you said no. That was my list."</p><p>Well, nice to know that Byleth was aware of his good looks, considering he only seemed to notice his flirting half the time. "Constance?" She was hardly the epitome of charm, but he'd seen her waltz around before, and it was a sight. Sometimes a hilarious one.</p><p>He shook his head. "I keep catching her in sunlight."</p><p>Yuri mentally ran through the rest of Byleth's class. Hapi wouldn't have any interest, and it was difficult to imagine Balthus twirling around. Bernadetta would run screaming at the request. Ingrid's skills weren't in footwork. Mercedes was lovely and well-liked by the others, but he'd never seen her do anything more strenuous than carrying a basket of vegetables to the dining hall. Felix would only bother if someone convinced him it was a form of training.</p><p>"Would I even be allowed to? I'm not actually part of your class."</p><p>"I asked Alois. He said it's fine, since you're training with us and haven't entered before."</p><p>He hadn't been asked when he was a student, and he hadn't paid the event much attention the first time around. Yuri dropped his head, ran his fingers through his hair, and groaned. "Is this what I get for making fun of the ball? Fine, I'll do it." Anything to keep Lorenz from crowing about his win or loudly lamenting his loss for the rest of the moon.</p><p>"You did say you owed me...."</p><p>"You are <em>not</em> using my favor on this stupid contest." But when he looked up, Byleth's face was only mostly serious; it was one of his weird jokes. "I'm volunteering, yeah?" After everything Byleth had done for them, Yuri could put up with one awkward request and win – whatever the silly prize was. At least Byleth would give him one of his smiles afterward.</p><p>Byleth nodded, then tilted his head and gave him a look. "If you really don't want to...."</p><p>"No, it's fine. I'll live. It's just dancing? No singing or anything?" Byleth nodded again; Yuri resigned himself to his fate."At least help me practice beforehand if you're making me do this. Not a lot of fancy balls happening below."</p><p>Byleth gave him yet another nod and reached over the table to pour him the last drops of tea. Yuri downed it immediately. After all the pastries he'd eaten, it didn't taste as sweet as it had an hour ago.</p><p>"Shall we hand them out?" Byleth inclined his head towards the basket.</p><p>"Yeah, sure." Seeing the kids would cheer him up, and they'd be swarmed the instant one of them smelled the sweets. He swiped the last of the cakes for himself, nibbling at it as Byleth packed away the remnants of their tea party in another basket. Then they left together, leaving behind the sunshine and the gossiping students for the comfortable darkness of Abyss.</p><p>The kids didn't have any secrets to whisper to him today, but they had plenty of excited shouts for him and for Byleth, who handed them pastries as seriously as he handed out training weapons and class assignments.</p><p>~!~</p><p>"A private lesson, Professor? Aren't I lucky."</p><p>Byleth gave him a blank look and started moving one of the desks to the side to make space. With the contest just a couple of days away, they'd found time for practice after the normal class hours; the classroom was deserted except for them, lit by the warm glow of candles now that dusk had fallen outside.</p><p>Yuri threw another log on the dying fire to ward off the chill creeping across the floor, then went to help Byleth shift the furniture. Between the two of them, it didn't take long to create a decent amount of room. He stepped into the middle and locked his hands behind his back, stretching out his shoulders. "So, what, I do my thing and you poke at me until we're both satisfied?" It would be awkward with no music to dance to, but oh well.</p><p>Byleth put a hand to his chin. "The contest is for single people... but isn't this kind of dance usually done in pairs?"</p><p>"Yeah. Haven't done it that way before, though." Well – Constance had tried to take him for a turn when she'd heard the news of him competing, declaring that she could not allow him to compete without impressing her grand dancing wisdom upon him. It had been one part disaster of trod-on feet and one part amusement for Hapi and Balthus.</p><p>Byleth offered him a hand, bare of his usual gloves. Yuri hesitated – he didn't see what this had to do with the contest – but Byleth's stare was insistent, so he reached for it. The first brush of their fingers suddenly reminded him that they'd never touched directly before. Though Byleth never seemed bothered by the cold, his skin was freezing.</p><p>"You warm enough, friend?"</p><p>He nodded and fit his other hand on Yuri's waist. Yuri knew how this went. He put his free hand on Byleth's shoulder and moved into the right position – then pressed closer than strictly necessary, smiling up through his eyelashes. "Count for us?"</p><p>Byleth counted the beat to the music they didn't have in a soft voice, leading Yuri slowly across the small space. It wasn't actually that different from doing the steps on his own, and he didn't have to think about what he was doing with his hands. He hesitated on the last step the first couple of times – Byleth let him, pausing before restarting the count – and glanced down at his feet.</p><p>"Eyes up," Byleth murmured. Yuri pulled his gaze back up. Byleth's face was a better sight than their dusty boots, anyway.</p><p>Once they had been through it a few times, Byleth sped up the counting a little, and then he stopped; they didn't need it to keep pace with each other any more. It would have been better with music, but Yuri decided that it was fun anyway, the movements and the synchronization, Byleth's hand gentle on his and starting to warm.</p><p>"You're pretty good at this," he said. "How'd you learn? Those mercenaries teach you?"</p><p>Byleth shook his head. "Manuela's lesson."</p><p>"You're joking. Just from that? I could hardly hear what she was saying." It had been difficult to concentrate at the group lesson, between Constance cackling from the shadowed archway as she spun a bewildered Hapi about, Ashe coming to ask him for advice, and Annette crashing into both of them from behind. As far as he had seen, Byleth hadn't danced himself, but milled about giving into pleas for his advice and coming over to adjust Yuri's shoulders or elbow with his hands.</p><p>"I know I made mistakes just now."</p><p>Had he? Yuri hadn't noticed. Thinking too hard about his own feet, perhaps. "Still, you must be naturally talented to pick it up that fast. Just like with everything else, heh."</p><p>"Not everything," he said.</p><p>"Near enough. You have a green thumb, could single-handedly supply us with fish if need be, aren't half bad as a cooking partner, teach us better than the guy who led the class my year, and have famous tea parties that people are always angling for an invite... not to mention you can use magic, have as good a grasp on a sword as anyone I've ever seen, and really do live up to the rumors when you lead us on missions."</p><p>It was like he had a secret sense for enemy movements, strengths, and weaknesses. Whenever Byleth asked Yuri to come along, he ended up spending the couple of days afterward turning the battle over in his head, trying to figure out how he'd done it and how to improve his own strategic skills from the example.</p><p>Byleth inclined his head. "Not speaking."</p><p>Yuri snorted. "Sure, I guess you won't win any awards for elocution. Still, that's a good list of talents. And you've got Rhea's trust and that fancy sword of yours... you're quite the man of mystery. Nobody even seems to know how old you are." Not to mention all the things he must have gotten up to before arriving at the monastery. Byleth rarely talked about his old life in specifics. There were a ton of stories about the Ashen Demon floating around, of course, and even more rumors had started after Byleth had arrived at Garreg Mach, but who knew how many of them were just stories.</p><p>He'd said it as an aside, but of course he was hoping for an answer; Byleth was quiet for several long moments, turning them away from a desk before they hit it, but Yuri was patient, and he was rewarded for it: "Twenty... one. I think."</p><p>Yuri frowned at him. "You think?"</p><p>"I'm not sure."</p><p>"You're not sure <em>how old you are</em>?" Ridiculous. Being unsure of one's age was for orphans and foundlings. Which Byleth wasn't, unless there was something else about his past nobody had heard of.</p><p>But Byleth shrugged. "I never needed to know. Until I came somewhere where people kept asking."</p><p>"And your father never told you?"</p><p>"When would he have told me?" Now he looked puzzled. "And I never asked about those things... I don't remember asking about my mother. Father showed me her grave after we came here. The empty one," he added thoughtfully.</p><p>Yuri didn't particularly want to think about that little adventure right now, not when he was enjoying himself with the rhythmic back-and-forth of their feet. "You seem pretty close to him. Guess if you've got one good parent, you don't always wonder about the other one."</p><p>The corner of Byleth's mouth pulled up; it wasn't quite a smile, but it was still satisfying to see. "And how is your mother? Is she well?"</p><p>"She's doing fine. After handing out all those sweets to the kids, you're not going to start trying to spoil her, too, are you?"</p><p>"Hm... I don't know anything about her."</p><p>Yuri didn't tell anyone too much about his mother; he didn't want anybody getting her involved in what was his own business. Far better if she could get on with her own life and enjoy what he was able to send her. "Guess I can't talk too badly about your mysteries when I have my own secrets."</p><p>"Everyone does."</p><p>"I suppose. Mine are probably darker than those of some of these noble kids, though." He knew that not all of them had lives full of sunshine and rainbows – he'd glimpsed enough of that world, and there were those like Ashe who were scrabbling their way up like he had. But most of the class hadn't had to learn every way to get their next meal or how to fight dirty young because there was no honor among thieves. Ugh, he didn't want to think about those unpleasant things right now, either.</p><p>Byleth paused their dance and sudden pulled their clasped hands upwards. Yuri didn't get what he was aiming for until he jerked their joined hands even higher, and then he rolled his eyes and did an awkward spin on the ball of his foot. When he had settled back into place, Byleth did an awkward spin right back, ducking under Yuri's shorter arm and making his coat flare out.</p><p>Afterward, he put his hand not on Yuri's waist but on his shoulder. "You were frowning," he said.</p><p>"Was I? Sorry about that."</p><p>"Unhappy memories?"</p><p>"Well, yeah." He shrugged, trying to pass it off, but Byleth's hand was so heavy, and so was his serious gaze. "You know a little about me. There were things that happened, things I did. I'm not proud of all of it."</p><p>Byleth shook his head. "Yuri, whatever your secrets... you know I don't approve of every one of your methods. But I appreciate that you're trying to do right. How you asked to learn healing magic after Hapi got hurt, how you look after Abyss." He tilted his head. "You're not a bad person."</p><p>Yuri scoffed, glancing aside. He wondered what Byleth would say if he knew that Yuri had once held a blade to the throat of Bernadetta, whom Byleth treated so quietly and gently, or why he'd lashed out so hard at Ashe at the thought of being dragged back to House Rowe. Being a mercenary, he'd probably excuse some of what he'd done, but surely not all of it.</p><p>But if they ever did somehow end up talking of such things, it wasn't going to be now. Enough of this subject. "Perhaps you'd decide otherwise if you knew more of it... but it'll take a few more dances for me to tell you." He looked up again, pulling on his charm with a grin.</p><p>Byleth let him. "How many tea parties to hear your other name?"</p><p>"That's an expensive one," he said with a laugh. "Even for your teatimes."</p><p>A lock of hair fell in his eyes; he reached up to brush it away with his free hand, but Byleth's was there first. The strands weren't long enough to tuck behind his ear, though he tried.</p><p>"Do you feel prepared now?" Byleth asked.</p><p>"Yes. Though you had the right idea about this lesson – dancing in pairs like this is more fun. I'm starting to understand why everyone's making such a fuss about this ball and who they want to dance with. But don't you worry." He gave his head a toss, brushing his hand along his cheekbone. "Just let me dress up a little and I'll win the contest for you."</p><p>The lock of hair dislodged itself again with the movement, and again Byleth smoothed it back in place for him. "You need to dress up? You already look nice."</p><p>"Yeah?" He caught Byleth's lingering hand and pressed it against his cheek. It was cold, like the other one had been before he'd warmed it up. "Go on, sing my praises more."</p><p>Ooh, there was one of those smiles, small and just for Yuri, sparking warmth in his chest. "You're good at dancing." Hah, who needed to fish for compliments when he could simply ask and Byleth would give them?</p><p>"I had a great teacher."</p><p>"And your hair's soft." Was his hand that cold, or was his own cheek warming? "...that's enough spoiling for one day."</p><p>"Aw. Gotta save up the rest for everyone else, huh?" He sighed and let Byleth's hand go; Byleth's fingertips brushed against his hair before he lowered it. And then looked down. Belatedly, Yuri realized that their other hands were still clasped from their dance, and he released that one, too.</p><p>They pushed the desks back into place and put out all the flames, then said their good-byes as Byleth locked up. Yuri slipped off to one of the entrances to Abyss. Now that the fun was over, it was time to care of the evening's business – though he caught himself humming on his way down the narrow passage, some part of his mind still caught on the rhythm of their dance.</p><p>~!~</p><p>That he won the contest was no surprise; Yuri had taken advantage of how much people loved looking at him on countless occasions. He <em>was</em> surprised that while it wasn't fun to be on the stage, he didn't mind it as much as he'd been dreading. Perhaps the presence of the other competitors helped, or the fact that he could see Byleth at the edge of the stage nodding along to the beat of the music once the band started playing, or even, just a little bit, the unmistakable shouts of support from Balthus and Constance in the corner.</p><p>The bigger surprise was what Manuela told him after she'd pulled him aside afterward. He had thought that the contest was just for bragging rights and maybe some meaningless award, a distraction from the day-to-day routine of lessons and the missions the church sent them out on. Special training in the days after as a prize? Nobody had informed him of that.</p><p>Of course it involved more dancing – in private, thankfully – and he could have done with a less complicated outfit. At least it was pretty comfortable once he'd figured out how to get the whole thing on. The cloth robe was soft and light, and he swore he could feel some kind of magic woven into the fabric. Maybe he could replace the sandals with something less likely to let his ankles twist later.</p><p>He was dismissed late when the training was finished. Making his way across the monastery's grounds, as he passed the dorms, he noticed that Byleth's room was lit. No time like the present to inform him; he crossed the path and knocked.</p><p>When Byleth answered the door and saw how he was dressed, his eyes widened. He took a few moments to give Yuri room to come in and stared when he entered, eyes flickering from one part of his clothing to another. Yuri smirked, pleased at the shocked attention, and gave his hips a little sway to make the decorations glint in the light as he went around him to hop up on his desk.</p><p>"I take it nobody told you what the real point of the contest was?" he asked, crossing his right leg over the left and letting the robe fall open over his thigh.</p><p>Byleth shook his head and came closer. "Rhea said something, I think... I didn't know what she meant." He tilted his head. "I've worked with dancers a couple of times before, but they're not common."</p><p>"I've never seen one. I'm sure Constance will have a field day when she finds out I've learned new magic I can't teach her... and will probably come to demand that you enter her next year. If you're staying?" He hadn't heard otherwise, and Rhea surely wouldn't be happy if Byleth left as easily as he'd shown up, but it would be nice to know for sure.</p><p>Byleth shrugged, but he said, "I like it here," which was good news. He shuffled another half-step closer; Yuri shifted his legs to make more room for him. "If I'd known ahead of time, I would have chosen you anyway. It suits you."</p><p>"The clothes or the class?" The metal bits on top felt heavy now that he was sitting down. He unhooked the pauldron from the parts that curved over his collar and swept the entire arrangement off his shoulder and down to the desk. It covered some of Byleth's papers, but he was paying a lot more attention to Yuri right now than whatever it was that he'd been working on.</p><p>"You're light on your feet," said Byleth. He brushed a lock of Yuri's hair back into place with gentle fingertips. "And good at swords. You're never going to be a mage, but you're doing well with white magic now that you've started learning. You like helping people. It's a decent path for you." He drew his hand back to his chin. "We'll have to talk about the strategic implications of having a dancer available in class now, too."</p><p>Of course that was where his mind would leap to first. "No mention of how my charming face will motivate everyone in these clothes? Tsk," he said. Byleth just blinked at him. Ah, fine, he could play along with his tactical mind. "So long as my sword skills stay sharp enough to defend them, I don't mind trying to support my friends more in battle. And the training was easy enough."</p><p>"Your Relic fits right in, too." Byleth gestured at his hand; Yuri held it up for easier inspection. Aside from the metal being a different color, it did blend with all the danglies and cuffs and whatnot on the outfit. He stared at the red gem on the back for a moment too long, until the pattern within it swam and wobbled before his eyes.</p><p>"Makes me feel even lighter than these robes. Ironic, considering the name and how much this thing weighs." It didn't fetter him at all; the first time he'd worn it into battle, he had felt like he could fly, zipping in and out of the range of enemies or from the front lines to someone who needed a little mending before one of the real healers could catch up.</p><p>Byleth took his hand; Yuri let him turn it towards the nearest candle for a better look. The pattern in the stone wavered again in a way that made him feel queasy, and he had to glance away. "Most of the class keeps asking me to look after their Relics when they receive them," he said. "You were the only one who asked for yours."</p><p>"Seriously?" He leaned back on his other hand, baffled. No way had he been giving up something so precious; he appreciated that Byleth had brought it down to him the day after he'd asked to borrow it from the Church. (And the Church better not be planning on asking for it back. He respected some of them, but not <em>that</em> much.) "What, people are just handing you their House treasures?"</p><p>"Not permanently. I think some of them are nervous about the responsibility." Byleth didn't seem unsettled by the weird gem at all; he kept staring right at it. "Or about the Relics. Hilda said hers pulsed. She didn't like it. Does yours?"</p><p>"Pulse? Uh, no. Sometimes I feel it beat against the back of my hand, but it doesn't move. I think it might just be reflecting my own heartbeat."</p><p>"Your heartbeat," Byleth repeated in a murmur. He let go of Yuri's hand and picked up the other, turning it over. His fingers cradled Yuri's wrist in a gentle grip, pushing the bangle up his arm so he could rest his thumb on his pulse point.</p><p>Yuri's eyebrows furrowed. He didn't mind the tender hold, but this was confusing. No explanation was forthcoming as the seconds ticked by; Byleth just tilted his head to the side, apparently fascinated by the beat of his heart. It was speeding up a little, sure, but there was nothing special about it.</p><p>The moment stretched out awkwardly long. This was kind of weird even for Byleth. Was he into this, maybe? Yuri could roll with that. He'd seen stranger.</p><p>"You know," he said lightly, "you could feel it better with your mouth." Byleth glanced at him, and for a moment, Yuri thought he'd ignore the invitation, or perhaps draw away.</p><p>But instead, he wrapped his fingers loosely around Yuri's hand, bent his head down – Yuri took a quick inhale of breath as Byleth pressed his lips to the pale vein in his wrist.</p><p>The touch was so light, but suddenly his heart seemed to be jumping out of his body right where Byleth's mouth was in contact with it, thudding against his skin. The longer ends of Byleth's hair fell, ticklish, against his arm, his palm; he curled his fingers around the soft strands. He wasn't entirely sure what to do for a moment, too surprised by Byleth. Should he bend down, too, or thread his hand into Byleth's hair proper and pull him up...?</p><p>Byleth lifted his face marginally. "It's strong," he said, breath warm on Yuri's wrist as he said the words, his eyes rising to meet Yuri's.</p><p>Of course it was, with a lovely, intense look like that being leveled at him. But they could do even better.</p><p>Yuri leaned his head and swept his left hand behind his neck, holding his hair back to show off the skin. "It would be stronger still in my neck," he said, lowering his eyelashes.</p><p>Byleth moved slowly, one movement at a time. He lowered Yuri's wrist, straightened his back, and then reached towards his neck, gaze not leaving Yuri's face. His fingers weren't quite so cold today, and Yuri inclined his head into them as they settled over his pulse.</p><p>There was another long moment of quiet as Yuri's heart <em>thump thump</em>ed against Byleth's fingers, jumping at the attention. Just as Yuri was losing patience and starting to reach up, Byleth – finally – leaned in to him so they could meet in a kiss.</p><p>It wasn't anything particularly exciting, but it was sweet and enjoyable. Yuri draped his arms around Byleth's neck and let him keep it light and unhurried.</p><p>The kiss ended as gently as it began. "And here I was wondering if my flirting was ever going to work on you," Yuri laughed, tugging Byleth back down, wanting more kisses, wanting his hands somewhere other than just his pulse.</p><p>"You didn't always mean it," Byleth pointed out. That was true, though he had on enough occasions. "'Meet me at the Holy Mausoleum at midnight'...."</p><p>"You like battle. Was fighting all night to save me as my blood was drained by a wicked man not a good first date? I suppose the second one will have to be better." He uncrossed his legs so he could pull Byleth even closer and pushed up into another kiss, a third, a harder one. Byleth slid his hand into Yuri's hair and parted his mouth when Yuri did. He wasn't the best kisser, but he wasn't bad at all – talent everywhere, this man. Definitely good enough to send heat pulsing through him.</p><p>They broke apart for a moment, Byleth resting his forehead against Yuri's, his fingers twisting and untwisting in Yuri's hair. His scalp tingled nicely from the soft movements. "Dancing, or tea and pastries?"</p><p>"What... oh. Only one or the other? How meager. Maybe you should let me plan it."</p><p>"Not another battle," Byleth murmured.</p><p>"Yes, yes, I understood you the first – ah." Byleth had shifted lower to press his lips to his neck, not aiming for the pulse point this time. He shivered at the touch, then shivered again when Byleth stroked his hand down through his hair. He grabbed at Byleth's and was pleased to feel him shudder, too.</p><p>A real first date... his mind skipped through a few ideas as he pressed his knees into Byleth's sides and guided his mouth down further. Maybe they could get out of the monastery for a bit, somewhere like that pretty pond to the north with its picturesque weeping willow tree. Byleth could bring a fishing pole if he wanted, and Yuri could cook them dinner far away from the loud bustle of the dining hall and point out the constellations Hapi had been teaching him when the stars came out. Or maybe Byleth would know different ones to show him. Not the fanciest idea, but starry nights were always romantic.</p><p>His line of thought was interrupted when Byleth's mouth found his exposed collarbone. He made a noise at how it felt – could've used more teeth, but it was a good start – and pulled Byleth back up for another kiss, this one longer and hotter than the others they'd shared so far.</p><p>Yuri trailed his right hand down to follow the line of Byleth's cheek, the skin smooth and now nicely warmed. He laughed when Byleth turned his head to kiss his palm, before he caught it and pressed his lips to Yuri's wrist again, eyes watching for his reaction. The thin skin there was ticklish in an odd way, producing tiny sparks of pleasure every time Byleth kissed it.</p><p>He turned his hand over when the ticklishness started to make him squirm too much, and Byleth kissed the back of it, too. "You have pretty hands," he said against his skin.</p><p>"Mm." There were tiny scars littered over them – mostly long-healed at this point – but he did try to keep them looking their best. Attractiveness wasn't just a beautiful face, after all, and it was nice to have that recognized.</p><p>Byleth put his hand down when Yuri leaned in for another kiss, more heat pooling in him as Byleth's mouth opened against his. These light clothes were starting to feel far too warm. He shifted on the desk, feeling even hotter as Byleth gripped his waist.</p><p>That was the only warning he got before Byleth broke their kiss and used the embrace to swing him off the desk. Yuri yelped – embarrassing – and clutched at him, stumbling slightly when his feet landed. The metal trinkets clinked as they swayed against each other. "Hey, now!"</p><p>"You were starting to crease the papers."</p><p>Yuri sighed at him. "They aren't that important, are they?" Byleth would live with wrinkled lesson plans or essays, or whatever. "Besides, I'd rather hear that you wanted to move somewhere more interesting."</p><p>He glanced pointedly at the bed behind Byleth, then decided that he'd had enough of waiting. Yuri pushed him over till Byleth's knees hit the edge and he sat down on it.</p><p>The previous angle on the desk had worked well, but climbing into Byleth's lap provided a good one for kissing, too – and produced a soft noise from Byleth's throat that went straight down Yuri's spine. Yuri had never heard him make a sound like that before, and he wanted to hear it again. There were a lot of things he wanted at the moment.</p><p>A flush had spread across Byleth's cheeks. Yuri had never seen that before, either. It was becoming on him, as was the dark, interested look in his eyes as he pulled Yuri further into his lap for another kiss, hands sliding along his robe. His blush deepened further as Yuri worked to get that lovely noise from him again, and to fulfill all the other little desires that Byleth was sparking in him with every new touch.</p><p>~!~</p><p>Some time later, on the edge of sleep but not quite there yet, Yuri traced the arm draped over him until he found Byleth's wrist, vaguely curious what it was that Byleth had found so interesting about his heartbeat.</p><p>Oddly, he couldn't find Byleth's pulse no matter where he pressed his fingers, only the soft skin and the firm tendons, the hard bumps of bone. He was too tired, perhaps, and he abandoned the idea in favor of snuggling further into the warm blankets, hand wrapping over Byleth's as his mind drifted back to the idea of a proper date.</p><p>Whenever it did happen, he was definitely picking a starry night; the endless, twinkling lights would reflect beautifully in the pond's water. He would make Byleth dig into his endless stocks of sweets and tea to have after dinner. And perhaps they could even try dancing together again, to no music but a rhythm of their own.</p>
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